Gardai move protestors away from Citywest following violence

Gardaí have begun to clear thousands of protestors away from the Citywest Hotel following major unrest and violence this Tuesday evening.

Thousands had gathered to protest outside the State-owned IPAS centre following the alleged assault of a young girl near the centre on Sunday night, October 19.

Protestors launched fireworks at members of An Garda Síochana’s Public Order Units, who used pepperspray and riot shields to keep them from breaching the main gate of the hotel campus.

People began to gather outside the hotel on Garter Lane at around 7pm this Tuesday evening, October 21, after a man in his 20s, who is reportedly an asylum seeker, appeared before a sitting of Blanchardstown District Court that morning, charged in connection with the alleged assault on the ten-year-old.

The Luas Red Line was stopped from Belgard to Saggart following a directive from An Garda Síochána.

The protest soon turned ugly, as the gathered crowd shouted chants of “get them out”, and protestors on horses/ponies attempted to charge gardaí.

A garda van was set alight, as protestors hurled glass bottles, wheelie bins and bricks at a line of gardaí holding riot shields across the gate.

A line of gardaí in riot gear, supported by a water cannon truck and members of the Public Order Unit on horseback, cleared the road immediately in front of the hotel gates just after 9pm, advancing up Garter Lane towards the Luas stop.

This is the first time the water cannon has been deployed by An Garda Síochana since it was purchased two years ago.

In a statement, Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said there “is no excuse for the scenes we have witnessed tonight.”

“The gardai are prepared for this, but attacking gardai and property is not an answer.”

“It is clear to me from talking to colleagues during the day and this evening that this violence does not reflect the people of Saggart.

“They are not the people participating in this criminality, but rather the people sitting at home in fear of it.

“Attacks on gardai will not be tolerated. Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of our democracy. Violence is not.”

So far there have been no reports of injuries or arrests, and Luas services between Saggart and Belgard remain suspended until the morning.